I'm looking to build a 5yr system (currently using an AMD Athlon 2500 Barton, think it's time to upgrade!), and have decided to go with the i7. Wanted to run these specs by the forum to see if anyone had advice as how to improve my current choices.
My budget is around $2000, with the rig used primarily for gaming / storage of digital movies. Will plan to overclock conservatively - not at first when I build my rig but a bit later as the extra clock speeds will help as my system gets more outdated. I currently use a 27" Dell monitor at 1920x1050 resolution.
CPU: Intel Core i7 920 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor
$299.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202
MOBO: ASUS P6T Deluxe/OC Palm LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard
$338.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131351
Comment: Not sure whether to get the Palm or regular P6T. I wouldn't mind having to pay a little extra for the option to see the weather on a nifty computer screen.
COOLING: No clue what to do here - any suggestions? I was planning on leaving my stock fan on until more LGA1366 brackets/fans came on the market... as I mentioned previously, overclocking right out of the box is not the most important thing for me as the chip should tear apart anything it gets with its stock rating.
PSU: SILVERSTONE OP1000-E 1000W
$169.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817256043
Comment: Either this or the Corsair 1000HX or Antec TPQ-1000 - all seem to be similar quality but Silverstone is the cheapest.
GPU: SAPPHIRE 100251SR Radeon HD 4870 X2 2GB 512-bit (256-bit x 2)
$479.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102768
Comment: May want to add another 4870 X2 in the future in CrossFire, as I'm running (relatively) high resolutions. What are people's thoughts on triple SLI vs. this option?
HDD: Western Digital VelociRaptor WD3000GLFS 300GB 10000 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
$199.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136260
+
Western Digital Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
$129.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284
Comment: I'm not too concerned about having my HDDs in RAID 0, as the marginal performance increase is not worth the increased risk of data loss. I'm not sure though if the WD Caviar Black is the best value for the storage drive though, does anyone have any suggestions?
MEMORY: G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
$239.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231236
Comment: It's rated at 8-8-8-21 at 1.65V - seems to be the best performance out of all the 6GB DDR3 1600 kits out there.
CASE: COOLER MASTER COSMOS 1000 RC-1000-KSN1-GP Black/ Silver Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case
$189.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119138
OPTICAL: Using my old DVD drive
O/S: Windows Vista Home Ultimate
Please tear apart my build - even if they are nitpicking / small suggestions. Also, can anyone comment whether component prices come down after Christmas? I don't mind waiting until Jan. to build this rig if it means saving $200+.
Thanks!
My budget is around $2000, with the rig used primarily for gaming / storage of digital movies. Will plan to overclock conservatively - not at first when I build my rig but a bit later as the extra clock speeds will help as my system gets more outdated. I currently use a 27" Dell monitor at 1920x1050 resolution.
CPU: Intel Core i7 920 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor
$299.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202
MOBO: ASUS P6T Deluxe/OC Palm LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard
$338.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131351
Comment: Not sure whether to get the Palm or regular P6T. I wouldn't mind having to pay a little extra for the option to see the weather on a nifty computer screen.
COOLING: No clue what to do here - any suggestions? I was planning on leaving my stock fan on until more LGA1366 brackets/fans came on the market... as I mentioned previously, overclocking right out of the box is not the most important thing for me as the chip should tear apart anything it gets with its stock rating.
PSU: SILVERSTONE OP1000-E 1000W
$169.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817256043
Comment: Either this or the Corsair 1000HX or Antec TPQ-1000 - all seem to be similar quality but Silverstone is the cheapest.
GPU: SAPPHIRE 100251SR Radeon HD 4870 X2 2GB 512-bit (256-bit x 2)
$479.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102768
Comment: May want to add another 4870 X2 in the future in CrossFire, as I'm running (relatively) high resolutions. What are people's thoughts on triple SLI vs. this option?
HDD: Western Digital VelociRaptor WD3000GLFS 300GB 10000 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
$199.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136260
+
Western Digital Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
$129.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284
Comment: I'm not too concerned about having my HDDs in RAID 0, as the marginal performance increase is not worth the increased risk of data loss. I'm not sure though if the WD Caviar Black is the best value for the storage drive though, does anyone have any suggestions?
MEMORY: G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
$239.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231236
Comment: It's rated at 8-8-8-21 at 1.65V - seems to be the best performance out of all the 6GB DDR3 1600 kits out there.
CASE: COOLER MASTER COSMOS 1000 RC-1000-KSN1-GP Black/ Silver Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case
$189.99; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119138
OPTICAL: Using my old DVD drive
O/S: Windows Vista Home Ultimate
Please tear apart my build - even if they are nitpicking / small suggestions. Also, can anyone comment whether component prices come down after Christmas? I don't mind waiting until Jan. to build this rig if it means saving $200+.
Thanks!